1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to the field of personal restraining devices, and more specifically to handcuffs of the kind normally used by police officers in the line of duty.
2. Description of Related Art
It is well-known among police professionals, and readily supported by documented statistics, that one of the most dangerous and vulnerable tasks performed by law enforcement officers is the procedure of handcuffing a suspect. However, today's police officers receive far too little practice in proper handcuffing techniques. Proficiency in handcuffing techniques requires regular and consistent practice, and absent regular practice, proficiency is quickly lost, as is personal confidence in one's tactical handcuffing ability.
Most law enforcement officers are required to regularly practice and qualify with their service weapons, but very few are required to regularly review and practice proper handcuffing techniques to the extent necessary to develop lasting competence and proficiency. Perhaps the biggest factor discouraging regular practice is the difficulty in removing the handcuffs once they are secured. This is because of the dexterity required in manipulating the key to unlock the handcuffs. Placing handcuffs on a suspect (or a training partner) is rather straight forward as the procedure is facilitated by use of the usual pawl and ratchet mechanism which permits the handcuffs to be "slapped on" the suspect's forearms without use of a key. Yet, when the handcuffs are to be removed, the office must hold the suspect's arm in place, insert the key in a handcuff with the proper alignment to the keyhole, rotate the key to lift the spring-biased pawl from the ratchet and manipulate the handcuff to open the bail. Furthermore, when handcuffs having double locking mechanisms (e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,574,600 issued to Moffet) are employed for added safety in preventing the suspect from picking the lock of the handcuff, an additional step is required to first rotate the key in a non-opening direction in order to unlock the double locking mechanism.
In training, the problem arises that too much time is wasted in removing the handcuffs through use of a key rather than practicing proper application techniques. During a typical handcuff training session, approximately two-thirds to three-fourths of the training session is spent by students in removing handcuffs, leaving too little time to practice other handcuffing techniques. Often times, students are told by instructors to simulate the actual handcuffing process in order to conserve training time. Another disadvantage is that with such delays in actual practice and the use of simulated techniques, students quickly become bored with the training, and thus, do not readily develop the skills needed for safely handcuffing a suspect.
In the prior art, toy handcuffs, such as those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,806,163 and 3,423,871 issued to T. J. Hoglund and C. F. Foley, respectively, have been designed with a quick release mechanism to facilitate opening of the handcuffs by children. However, these handcuffs are designed for use solely as toys as they can be easily opened by the wearer without the use of a key. Although such handcuffs could conceivably be adapted for training purposes, they would not be readily accepted for such use by the police force since they do not comprise the same design and functionality as those actually used in the field. An officer who practices with a different type of handcuff during training would not posses sufficient skill and confidence in using the actual handcuffs on the street. Furthermore, it would also be difficult to justify the expense to municipal and state police departments for separate sets of training handcuffs since they could only be used for training purposes.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide a handcuff of the type normally used by police officers having a quick-release mechanism for training purposes and means for overriding the quick-release mechanism so that the training handcuff can be converted to a restraining device for actual use.